For countless generations, parents have introduced their
children to an assortment of kid-friendly classics like Go Fish,
Authors, and Quartet. Of this category of game, Go Fish
continually surfaces as the time-honored favorite. Some have
suggested that the game’s predictable lure arises from a child’s
innate synchronicity with the aquatic pastime while others have
maintained that kids just love telling adults what to do without
having to say "please."

A second, less strategy-oriented group of games has also been
on the march for centuries, invading playrooms across the globe
well into the new millennium—the War-games. Each hoping to
commandeer the entire deck, dueling siblings worldwide have been
known to sit for hours mindlessly turning cards over from their
stack trying to "one-up" the other. Russian children play their
own version of War called P’yanitsa which translates curiously
as Drunkard. Italian children often choose Camicia, a clear
relative of the English Beggar. Finally, another War-like
variation in America, sometimes called Bloodystump or Slap, is
best known among young aficionados as the exotic sounding
Egyptian Ratscrew. Exactly which country or century should be
credited for creating these timeless gems remains debatable, but
historians are firmly in agreement on one point—there will
likely always be War-games.

: Lay down (or the act of laying down) a required
string of cards because the previous player played a Chili Pepper

Pickled Pepper

: A Chili Pepper played during a pickle

Overview

All cards are dealt—an equal distribution to
all players. Each player holds his cards as a
facedown stack. In turn, each player blindly
contributes one card to create a continually
growing pile in the center until a Chili Pepper
is played. The subsequent player must then begin
pickling cards one by one until he lays down the
required string or gets a Pickled Pepper. If he
gets a Pickled Pepper, his pickle immediately
ends and the next player starts to pickle and so
on around the table. Otherwise, if no Pickled
Pepper appears before a player lays down the
required string of cards, the previous player
wins the center pile along with any associated
pickled cards. The sole remaining player with
cards to play wins the game.

Setup

Normal 52 card deck, no [Scrokers].

Deal all cards in an equal distribution to all players. Any
spare cards (as for three or five players) are dealt to the center
of the table facedown to be taken by the first player to take the
center cards.

Rules

Each player squares up the cards dealt to him and holds them in
his hand as a facedown stack.

Beginning with the player to the dealer’s left, each player, in
turn, takes one card off the top of his stack, turns it over and
plays it in the center of the table to create a continually growing
pile of face-up cards. This cycle continues indefinitely until a
Chili Pepper is played.

A player must begin to pickle anytime the player to his right
plays a Chili Pepper in the center pile. The string of cards should
be played as a vertical array stretching from just
outside the center pile towards himself.

The number of cards to be pickled by a player depends on how hot the Chili Pepper is that initiated his pickle. For
example, the [Four-chili-pepper-E] would require a player to pickle
four cards.

If a Pickled Pepper appears, the requirement to complete a
pickle ends. Instead of adding to his own string, a player lays the
Chili Pepper just outside the center pile in front of the player to
his left.

A player must begin to pickle anytime the player to his right
lays a Pickled Pepper in front of him. The string of cards should be
played as a vertical array stretching from just below or slightly
over the Pickled Pepper towards himself.

If a player pickles the complete string of required cards
without producing a Pickled Pepper, the player to his right takes
all of the cards in the center pile as well as any cards currently
in pickled strings. The "taking" of cards is generally an
unceremonious gathering and sweeping the rough pile towards oneself
to expedite play. The next card is played to the center by the
player who just finished pickling.

When a player depletes his stack, he gathers all the cards he
has taken thus far, squares them up as a new facedown stack and
continues playing.

Variation for big kids

During a pickle, a player may prematurely end his requirement to
lay anymore cards and usurp all of the cards in the center by wording with the pickled letters and
associated Chili Pepper. For example, the [Two-chili-pepper-O] is
played. The next player first pickles the [L] and is unable to word.
His next pickled card is the [W]. He then announces the word "low"
before removing his finger from the [W] and then takes all of the
cards currently in play. A spellcheck loser issues the
top five cards from his stack to the winner’s collection of taken
cards.

All cards are dealt (26 to each player). Each
player holds his cards as a facedown stack. Both
players contribute one card to the center of the
table. Generally, the player that contributes
the highest-ranking card wins both cards. The
exception occurs when both players play an
Animal. In this instance, the "Jungle rule" is
used to determine which player will take the
cards in the center. The game is won when one
player has taken all the cards.

Setup

Normal 52 card deck, no [Scrokers].

Deal all cards (26 to each player).

Rules

Each player squares up the cards dealt to him and holds them in
his hand as a facedown stack.

Each player takes one card off the top of his stack and plays it
in the center of the table. The player that contributes the card of
higher rank wins both cards except as explained by the
"Jungle rule."

Jungle rule: All Animals rule equally.
Therefore, when two animals appear, the tie must be resolved. Each
player contributes three facedown cards followed by one face-up
card. The ranks of the two newly played face-up cards are then
compared to determine the winner of all cards in the center of the
table. In the event of another Animal tie, the Jungle rule applies
again.

When a player depletes his stack, he gathers all the cards he
has taken thus far, squares them up as a new facedown stack and
continues playing.

After players gain a little experience, the game proceeds fairly
rapidly and, consequently, no emphasis is placed on who leads or how
collected tricks are maintained.

Variations for big kids

Optional scrumping

: The most common place to allow a player
to scrump (somewhat loose interpretation) is during
the Jungle rule after the tie-breaking face-up cards have been
played. The player who would normally lose all of the cards in the
center could, instead, take them if he could identify a word (two,
three or four-letter minimum length, as agreed upon prior to the
start of the game) with any or all of the currently displayed
face-up cards. Additionally, scrumping anytime using two-letter
words may or may not be allowed according to player’s preferences. A
spellcheck loser issues the top five cards from his
stack to his opponent.

Three players

: Cards are dealt equally (17 to each player
with the remaining card dealt face down in the center of the table
to be taken in the first card challenge. All challenges are
comprised of three vice two cards, and two or three-way ties are
possible during Jungle rules. The major difference in this
three-player variation is that the object of the game is to be the
first player to lose all the cards, not win them. Correspondingly, a
player may scrump the center cards, if able, to avoid taking them,
thereby forcing the player on his left to take them. A spellcheck winner issues the top five cards from his stack
to the spellcheck loser.

Tips

For two players, allow scrumping only during Jungle rules.
Otherwise, allow scrumping all the way up to the time that the
would-be-scrumper plays his card in the follow-on challenge.

Consider a higher minimum word length and/or clarify between
players exactly which cards will be legal to use for scrumping
during back-to-back Jungle rules.

Combine letters in hand with letters gained
from other players’ hands to create the most
words or be the first to "go-out"

Definitions

Well

: The spot in the center of the table where a stock of
facedown cards sits

Wish

: Take (or act of taking) a card from the "well" in
hopes of drawing a particular letter

Overview

This game is for big kids. All cards are
dealt in four equal piles: 13 to each player and
13 to the well. In turn, each player asks an
opponent to hand-over any cards depicting a
particular letter. If, on the other hand, he
asked for a letter that his opponent did not
hold, his turn ends and he goes to the well to
wish. The player that sent him to the well then
takes his turn and so on. If a player is able to
empty his hand of cards (go-out), he
automatically wins. Otherwise, the winner is the
player who has played the most words at the time
the well empties.

Setup

Normal 52 card deck, no [Scrokers].

Deal all cards, 13 to each player and 13 to the well.

Square-up cards in the well.

Rules

The player to the dealer’s left leads.

A player always begins his turn by asking another player to
hand-over all of his cards that depict a particular letter. He may
not ask for a letter he already holds in his hand. For example,
provided he holds no E’s of any suit, Cody might say "Nicole, show
me your E’s." If Nicole has any E’s from any suit she must hand them
all over to Cody.

If one or more cards are handed-over to a player, he may word, if able, before continuing his turn. In order to word,
the word must be played immediately following receiving a card or
cards from another player, and must contain one or more of those
cards just received. Whether or not a player words or is able to
word, his turn continues allowing him to query the same or a
different player about the same or different letter.

When a player does not hold any cards depicting the letter
requested by another player, he instructs that player to wish.
Continuing with the previous example, if Nicole held no E’s when
queried by Cody, she might have instead said "You wish" which would
have forced Cody to draw one card from the well.

A player sent wishing has one last opportunity to word before
his turn ends. If the card drawn from the well turns out to be the
card he just asked for, he may word using that card, if able. The
decision to word in this case must be made before the card is
brought into the player’s hand. The card from the well is placed on
the table to be immediately thereafter arrayed with
the other cards from the hand that complete the word. When he
finishes wording, or instead, does not word and places the card from
the well in his hand, his turn ends. At this point, the player
responsible for sending his opponent to the well begins his turn,
and so on.

All words played are clearly displayed on the table by each
player as firm arrays.

The winner of a spellcheck takes one already valid
displayed word from the loser to become his own for scoring
purposes. If the loser does not yet have a word, he will owe one to
the winner.

Scoring

A player automatically wins the game by emptying his hand of all
cards (going-out).

Otherwise, when the player who takes the last card from the well
finishes his turn, the player who has played the most words wins.

A tie of equal words played is broken by the player who played
the longest word. If a tie still exists, the card of highest rank within the longest word will rule.

Variation

Four Players

: Deal 50 cards: 10 to each player and 10 to the
well. The remaining two cards are placed on top, and squared-up with the
other cards to create a 12-card-deep well.